Like anything, you will need to pay for some charges or fees when trying to sell your items. However, what are those fees? How many of them do you have to pay?
Have you ever wondered about those questions? Well, if you have, continue reading the article below, as we will be talking about one of the few fees eBay charges users, and how the company calculates them.
What Is an Import Charge on eBay in 2024?
Import charges are fees and taxes that need to be paid if you are purchasing an item from an international seller in 2024. Although it may sound daunting when sellers use GSP, this process is made easy, as all charges are displayed for the buyer during checkout, so none are missed.
Continue reading if you’d like to learn more about eBay’s import charges, like how they are calculated, and other useful facts!
Why Do I Have to Pay an Import Charge?
If you use eBay, you must follow all applicable tax laws.
Therefore, if you’re shopping internationally, you must be prepared to pay any import charges once you receive your package.
Most of the time, though, when using GSP, eBay will inform the buyer of the import charges during the checkout process or their item.
Furthermore, these charges are determined by the country they are going to and also the price, postage weight, dimensions, and the original country of origin of the item.
How Does International Shipping Work for Sellers?
Selling your items internationally is an excellent way to grow your business, and it’s an easy process if you are following the right steps.
Luckily, eBay offers a Global Shipping Program to help users do just that.
Furthermore, here are a couple of reasons to use this program instead of shipping the item yourself:
- You only need to send your parcel to a domestic shipping center near you, and eBay will take care of the rest. Once you drop it off there, they will fully take care of international shipping and customs, and also provide tracking information to you and the buyer.
- If something goes wrong and your parcel is damaged or gets lost during the international part of its journey, eBay will take full responsibility for it and your seller performance won’t be affected (any negative comments or reviews will be removed off your page).
- Standard eBay fees (including international fees for sellers) will apply to transactions under the Global Shipping Program.
Additionally, adding the option to ship internationally for your listings is very simple; all you need to do is follow these simple steps:
- Open your listing, choose “Show international services and option,” and select “save”
- Next, choose either a Flat Rate where you select the shipping cost or a Calculated rate which depending on the buyer’s location, the US postal service comes up with a price.
- Then, select the countries you would like to ship to from “Destination,” and choose your preferred shipping carrier
- Lastly, click Confirm
Although shipping internationally can be very easy, there are some requirements you need to meet in order to use this feature on eBay:
- Have an active eBay account that’s in good standing
- Make your first successful sale at least more than 90 days prior
- Earn at least 10 feedback points as a seller
- Post listings in an eligible category; video games, movies, knives, and automotive are not eligible.
If you have these things then you are well on your way to your International Shipping fun!
How Does International Shipping Work for Buyers?
For buyers, receiving international packages is pretty straightforward, no matter if the seller uses regular shipping services or eBay’s global shipping program if they are in the US or UK.
However, although straightforward, buying items from international sellers can be very costly to you as the buyer.
Furthermore, to see roughly how much shipping costs will be, you can look in the Shipping and Payments section of the listing, and it should be there.
As well, you should be able to see where the seller is shipping it from, a list of countries the seller ships to, and what service the seller is using to ship your item.
Additionally, if they are using eBay’s Global Shipping Program, you should be able to see the “GSP” logo somewhere on the listing.
If you do see this logo, then you will be able to have these benefits:
- You will only have to pay for shipping, taxes, and import charges once up front, and there won’t be extra charges when your item is delivered.
- Tracking is included while using the GSP, so you can track your package the minute it ships out.
- You will not have to worry about any paperwork, as all GSP packages include custom clearance already.
Fortunately, when your item is being shipped through GSP, payment is also made very easy.
This is because when you pay, your payment is split into two transactions for you.
- First, the payment goes to the seller, which then allows them to send your package to the global shipping center. In this payment, the seller gets money for the item, but also any domestic shipping costs are covered.
- Then, the second payment covers the international shipping cost and import charges (if any).
However, if you are buying an item from a seller not using the GSP, then things are a little more complicated.
Furthermore, although you’re still paying for everything at checkout, when your package arrives, you might have to pay for additional charges like customs, import fees, and taxes.
To know more, you can also read our posts on eBay’s reserve price, eBay UPC, and eBay insertion fee.
Conclusion
Import fees are important, as eBay users must follow all laws. Fortunately, displaying most or all fees while a customer is checking out an item makes this easier for buyers, as all fees are being displayed for them at once. Therefore, it’s hard to miss or forget any.
Furthermore, the whole process of buying from international sellers is made easy using eBay’s GSP, including any fees that need to be paid, so it’s a worry-free process for you and the seller.
